The Oxford Animal Shelter has given new life to a loveable Labrador retriever that was nearly euthanized because of a disease.

Known affectionately as Miss “Maggie,” the 3-year-old yellow Lab was brought to a local veterinarian to be put down because she had a severe skin condition that the owners could not afford to take care of.

The vet felt a soft spot for the animal and sought help from the Oxford shelter, which is known for taking care of dogs seen as “lost causes,” said shelter volunteer Kristi Novin.

“One look at that precious face and that happy tail and the officers knew they had to try,” Novin said in an email to Oxford Patch.

So off to the shelter they went.

Though Maggie’s skin condition turned out to be far worse than originally thought, the shelter just needed to help her – for like she did to Rod Stewart, Maggie stole their hearts, and they couldn’t leave her if they tried.

The day after the Oxford shelter took her in, Maggie started bleeding and was clearly in pain. The shelter workers brought her to a vet to be treated for mange.

“Maggie’s bloody body would need a lot of TLC,” Novin said.

The dog needed antibiotics, tubes of cream and bottles of shampoo in an attempt to fix the problems. Treatment started to work, but the skin scraping soon came back: Maggie was diagnosed with mange, staph infection, E. coli infection and a yeast infection.

Over the past few months, Maggie has undergone many treatments and has been a great sport through it all, Novin said - she hasn't whined or acted up and has worn a jacket each day so she will not affect other animals.

While volunteers and animal control officers help Maggie out of the kindness of their hearts, the treatment is not free. Thousands of dollars in vet bills are starting to put a huge dent in shelter coffers that are already thin - the shelter receives some funding from the town, but relies on donations to keep it running smooth and help animals in need. The shelter building itself is also old and rundown, and animal control officers and local volunteers are working to raise money for a new headquarters.

So, in an attempt to help Maggie, staff and volunteers are seeking donations to continue to pay for her ongoing treatments.

“We adore this girl,” Novin said.

People are asked to consider sending a monetary donation to: Oxford Animal Shelter/Attn: Maggie, 486 Oxford Road/Oxford, CT 06478.

After all, to again quote Rod Stewart, all Maggie needs is “a friend to lend a guiding hand.”